Body fluid detection devices are used for determining properties and/or constituents of body fluids such as urine excreted from a person. For example, a urine detection device is often placed inside a transparent urine collecting bag that is attached to the leg of a person from whom the urine is collected via a tube arrangement. Such a urine detection device may be provided with indicators for determining, for example, nitrite and leukocyte contents as well as electrolyte and pH values in the excreted urine. The indicators, to which urine is exposed, may be used to examine urine for developing and existing pathogen infections, which, for example, correspond to the pH, nitrite, leukocyte and electrolyte values in the urine. The indicators may for example react to constituents in the urine by a color change. A device of this type is disclosed in EP 0 560 099 A2.
EP 1150 609 B1 discloses a device of the mentioned type for receiving and controlling voided body fluids such as urine. Nevertheless, in many cases, it would be useful to arrange a urine detection device directly in an absorbent article such as a diaper for collecting voided urine and determining constituents of the urine voided.
DE 20 2007 005 962 U1 discloses a device for detecting uncontrolled voided urine for at least one property of the excreted urine. The device is arranged in layers placed on top of each other with a flat thin guidance nonwoven layer for receiving the excreted body fluid, in particular for holding urine and a flat thin adhesive nonwoven layer having approximately the same size as the guidance nonwoven. The adhesive nonwoven layer covers one side of the guidance nonwoven layer and is connected thereto. Furthermore, the adhesive nonwoven layer is on one side provided with an adhesive. The adhesive nonwoven layer also has a central opening being in flow communication with the guidance nonwoven layer.
In the region of the central opening, there is arranged test means in the form of a test card, which has an opening port for guiding the urine that has been absorbed by the guidance nonwoven layer into the test means via the central opening. The test means may be the urine detection device that is described in EP 1150609 B1.
The device disclosed in DE 20 2007 005 962 U1 is intended to be placed in a diaper or the like as an insert which is glued to a surface of an inner cover, i.e. topsheet, of the diaper by the means of the adhesive layer.
One problem with the arrangement disclosed in DE 20 2007 005 962 U1 is that the test means has to be removed after the urine has been collected in order to be able to determine the urine properties and/or contents. The removal of the insert arrangement may lead to the risk of disruption of the material of the topsheet, which may cause problems in determining the urine properties and/or contents as well hazardous risks to persons such as nursing staff in contact thereto due the exposure to body excretions, for example.
Although said prior art insert test device to some extent may alleviate the problems of properly placing and securing a test means such as urine detection device in an absorbent article such as a diaper, there is still a need for further improvements of test arrangements so as to provide an arrangement that is easy and safe to use and produce.